Never Would Have
by Star tsuneni
Summary: The story of young Sirius at Hogwarts, the girl he loved, the secret she kept, and how 10 long scars on his arms would keep his soul together in Azkaban.
1. Chapter 1

Never Would Have

_This is my first Harry Potter fic. Sirius/OC. Reviews are much appreciated!_

James Potter had been caught once again in the doldrums of Easter break at Hogwarts.

"I'm bored." Sighed the 15 year-old as he lie on his back beneath the tree that boardered the lake. He hadn't expected anyone to reply, but Sirius shifted in the grass a few feet away.

"Well isn't that too bad for you," The words came out slowly: something else was clearly dominating Sirius's attentions. "I found something to keep _me_ occupied."

James' well-trained eyes darted over just in time to catch Sirius's smirk.

"_Accio_." Whispered Sirius. James copied his grin.

"Is it Snivellus?" James perked up his head excitedly. When there was nothing else to do, torturing that freak Severus Snape was his favorite hobby.

_WHOOSH._

James forced his head back down with a thud just as a dark shadow passed over him. If not for his sharp reflexes, which he owed to Quidditch, his nose surely would have been broken by the body within the black robes that had just whizzed over him. He turned over on his side, expecting to see Snape sprawled out on the ground. What he saw instead was a girl with sleek, silvery hair and deep violet eyes sitting, stunned, in Sirius's lap. While it was not what he expected, he could not say he was surprised. He watched with an expression of mild interest as the girl, who finally seemed to regain her senses, tried to clamber out of Sirius' lap. She managed to raise herself a few inches before Sirius threw one arm around her waist, the other around her shoulder, and, quickly but gently dipping her back so that the crown of her head touched the grass, pressed his lips against hers.

From somewhere on the other side of Sirius, James heard angry muttering of what sounded like, "Siwius! Gut the fruck opf me!"

James heard a snort. He was sure that somewhere in that mass of robes, Sirius was grinning as two small hands pushed at his shoulders. It seemed the girl could only stand so much, for after a few seconds of pushing James heard a crack so loud it made him wince. Remus Lupin's eyes briefly came up from his book, Peter Pettigrew squealed and put his face in his hands.

Sure enough, Sirius had taken a right hook to the jaw. He lie sprawled on the grass, but with a look of satisfaction rather than surprise or pain. The girl sprang off him, taking a few steps before bounding back to kick him square in ribs, causing the handsome, dark-haired boy to roll over curl up on his side.

James briefly considered helping Sirius before taking one look at the glowering girl and brushing it off as 'the dumbest idea he'd ever had'.

Sirius shook off the pain, swishing his hair, before sitting up to meet those fierce violet eyes. He gave her a devilish grin, earning him another kick in the gut, but he did not fall. He gave an amused laugh, and her glare hardened to the point where she appeared dangerously close to throttling him.

"You know, you're odd," He said shifting his sore jaw from left to right as though trying to pop it back into place. He licked his lips with relish, trying to catch the sweet taste of her lips on his tongue. "You have your wand, but you always prefer to beat me up the muggle way."

"Oh yeah?!" She seethed. "Try some crap like that again, and I might just have to try my Body-Bender Hex on you! How would you like to have your foot put up your a-?"

"Well I'd prefer if you showed me how to do that with your _body_ instead of a hex." Sirius tossed his hair in his cocky manner, meeting her amethyst eyes with his deep, beautiful blackest-brown ones. Despite her scowl, he caught her sharply take in a breath. He found this brief display of weakness immensely pleasing.

Her eyes darted away from his. She was positively shaking with rage.

"Do you think you can just do that? Just pull a girl off her feet- literally- and start kissing her!? Well then you-"

"Not any girl," He cut her off for the second time. Her teeth were gritted so tightly together James was sure if you somehow got a bone in between those jaws it would snap like a cracker. "Just you, babe. I mean you wouldn't make a very good girlfriend if you didn't like kis-"

"Oh, don't you _dare_, Sirius Black!" People were staring at them now. "Don't you dare pretend that I'm your girlfriend! Is that what you tell these friends of yours?!" She gestured to the other three Marauders with a sweeping motion. "Because you know damned well that I do my best to avoid you, you arrogant git! But you keep trying! The conjuring flowers up for me during Potions, the trying to lure me into secret passageways with chocolates- just give it up! I never have fancied you, Sirius Black, and never will!"

With nothing else to say, she turned around, determined not to look at him. Half the lawn had listened in on her little monologue. There was silence. Sirius was way too popular to ever be insulted, and as for her, well- it was well-known that the more beautiful a girl was, the more deadly her wrath.

A Ravenclaw girl some twenty yards away with mouse brown hair to her mid-back and grey eyes that were just a little too close together to be attractive broke the silence. "If you won't take him, I sure will!"

"Oh _shut up_, Esmerelda!" This shout accompanied by a disgusted look from Sirius successfully quieted the girl, whose face flushed as she buried herself into _Standard Book of Spells: Grade Six_.

"Don't worry about it babe," Sirius said reassuringly to the beautiful witch before him. "I wouldn't go for her even if she is a seventh year, she's too-"

The girl he was attempting to woo gave a howl of frustration.

"Leave Galatea alone, Sirius." Came a calm voice from the base of the tree. Remus Lupin had seen her pinkening cheeks and knew she was growing tired of boy everyone else seemed to think a charmer. Having someone on her side seemed to ease her nerves a bit, for in the next instant she had swept around, giving Sirius a face full of robe as a goodbye, and marched over to Lupin.

"Thank you, Remus." She swept down and kissed his cheek so swiftly that he dropped the book he was holding. Peter blushed so deep a scarlet he looked like he might faint. Moony's eyes shot to meet those of Sirius, who was trying to force his envious expression to change to one of indifference. She had just drawn herself to her full height, a mere 5'5, when what Sirius thought was a small giant came lumbering over.

"Oi, whatsamatter, Galatea? These boys giving you a hard time?" Called a massive seventh year Sirius did not recognize. He found himself wondering how he could miss such a boy. He was at least 6'5, with broad, square shoulders that matched his square jaw. From the way his robes clung to his shoulders, it was fair to assume he was unnaturally muscular. He had unkempt chestnut hair and eyes the same shade. His look was offset, however, by an intelligent-looking pair of wire-rimmed glasses.

"No, no, not at all, Herbert!" She took one last scathing look at Sirius, who was whispering in James' ear."

"Who is this bloke? If he's her boyfriend I'll challenge him to duel right here." He whispered in a voice that made it clear just how serious he was. James shot a quick look at Galatea before responding.

"No, mate- that's Herbert Bott- he's in Ravenclaw. He's her first cousin."

Sirius gave a displeased grunt.

"Let's go, Herbert. I want try that new flavor you told Uncle Herbie about!" Galatea chirped. She shot one last hateful glare at Sirius, who winked in return. She turned and walked away with a huff.

Sirius stood up, dusting off his robes. He considered shouting 'See you in the common room!', but figured that would only make her avoid the common room at all costs. Glancing about him, he happened to catch the expressions of Remus and Peter and scowled.

"What's with that look on your face, Moony? You look like you've never been kissed before!" To this Lupin replied with a shaking of his head and quietly picked up his book. "And you, Wormtail! Why are you blushing? She didn't do anything to _you_!"

Wormtail averted his eyes to the ground and scurried to his feet like a spooked rat.

"Fancy her that much, Padfoot?" Inquired James with a smirk. If he hadn't been confident that Lily Evans was going to agree to be his girlfriend any day now, Galatea Stapleton was easily his second pick. It wasn't that Galatea wasn't as pretty as Lily, she just didn't have the same charm as the red-haired temptress.

Sirius stretched his arms. "That one likes me, no doubt about it. I'll have her, I will- just wait and see."

"You have strange tastes. That girl is too bold, no charm whatsoever." James said matter-of-factly. He shook his head slightly.

"I know- she's a wild one," Sirius replied delightedly. "But it's the chase that makes it fun."

Sirius turned, expecting James to nod in agreement, but James too was looking to the side.

"Oi, Evans!" He bellowed, dashing over to her. He made sure to rub his hand over the back of his head as he went.

Lupin cracked a small smile.

"I think he knows exactly what you mean, Sirius."

* * *

_Chapter 2 will be up soon! It might take two or three chapters to really get to the interesting parts, but bear with me! Please review!_


	2. Where'd You Get Those Pretty Eyes?

**Chapter 2: Where'd You Get Those Pretty Eyes?**

_Don't forget to review please!_

Galatea Stapleton sat in the window seat of the Gryffindor common room. The window seat was not really a seat at all, but rather the sill of the common room's only bay window, a spot she never had any competition for. She liked to attribute this to everyone knowing the spot was 'hers', but knew it was more likely no one could stand to sit on the cool, harsh, stone sill for more than a few minutes. Today she sat hunched over her photo album, sketching dates and events onto the newer photos with her quill while her friends and fellow fifth-year girls sat in the moth-eaten armchairs, chatting idly. Among these fifth years was her friend and rival for the number-one spot in their year: Lily Evans. When Lily had beaten her out for the spot of prefect, Galatea had believed this was because Lily outdid her in Muggle Studies and History of Magic, but Dumbledore had made it quite clear that Galatea's 'insubordination streak' and 'fondness for fisticuffs' had tipped the scales in Lily's favor.

Galatea turned over a picture of the head and shoulders of a lovely woman with flowing sienna hair and sharp, hazel eyes. She was winking and pursing her lips in a charming, sassy way. Galatea began scribbling the date the picture was taken. It was easy to remember: March 3 1958, a year before her birthday. Caught in her own little world, she forgot she was supposed to be keeping a watchful eye out for a certain someone she happened to loathe until she heard Lily groan out, "Not you two..."

Galatea looked up with the dreadful knowledge of whom had just entered the room. If there was anyone who pissed Lily off the way Sirius pissed Galatea off, it was James Potter, and James was never without Sirius. Her eyes flew up from her book, but two dark ones were already waiting to meet her gaze. Suddenly feeling very much like an antelope in the presence of a lion, Galatea motioned for the girls' dorm, but Sirius seemed to cross the room in just one leap. His strong abdomen had pinned her legs to the wall so that she could neither run nor kick him, and he caught the fist she sent at him.

"Take your hands off me!" She demanded. She tried to wrestle her wrist free, but Sirius was stronger. He gave her a lopsided grin and a sort of hopeful expression, his eyebrows raised to show the mixture of amusement and pain- she was stabbing him in the pelvis with the point of her shoe.

"Just let me talk to you for a second!" He pleaded. He leaned back slightly- in their struggle for dominance her arm had for a second regained enough control to make a swipe at him.

"Let me go first!" She growled, driving the points of her shoes into his torso.

"No, if I let you go you'll 1- beat me up," He gave low hiss of pain."and 2- not give me the time of day! Just hear me out!"

"No! No! No! No! NO!" She had brought her right arm around, in the hand of which was the very heavy album, and proceeded to beat him over the head with it, bonking him over the head once for every 'no' she uttered.

"Ow- Merlin's beard!-" Sirius covered his head with his forearm. After the tenth collision, he uttered a growl which Galatea thought seemed very much more like a dog's then like a man's.

"Ouch! Stop hitting me with that damn book, would you?" He seized the brown, leather-bound book with his shielding arm and flung it backwards over his shoulder. He sighed with relief.

"Now..." He looked up at her with a smile, but she was looking down over his shoulder with a horrified expression.

"You _idiot_!" She shrieked, flailing her legs with even more force now.

"What?" Sirius furrowed his brows together with bemused innocence. He slowly turned his head to see over his shoulder.

"_Crap._" The book he had tossed had landed partially in the Gryffindor common room fire. If Galatea had looked horrified, Sirius looked even more so.

"Don't worry, I'll get it!" He said frantically, tearing away from the amethyst-eyed harpy. He dashed over to the fire and reached for the book, but was repelled by the heat. He frantically dug in his robes.

_Dammit, she's gonna hate me forever if this book burns up!_

He whipped out his wand.

"AGUA-"

"Don't wet it, you git!" She barked, feeling for her own wand.

"Excendo!" Came five voices. The fire vanished before Sirius's eyes, leaving only a whisp of white steam in it's place. Sirius turned to find the wands of James, Remus, Lily, Galatea, and a fifth-year girl named Carrie Mindleshaw all pointed at the hearth. Sirius seized the book from the fireplace, swearing as a pile of ashes fell away from it, and handed it gingerly back to Galatea, who quickly snatched it. Sirius made sure to conceal his embarrassment from her.

_We just learned that spell in charms last week. How could I forget it?_ He mentally kicked himself.

"Scourgify." He heard her mumble. The ashes wiped themselves from the book into nothingness. The top right corner of most of the album had burned away, leaving a flaky, black line of burned parchment. Sirius watched her long hair swish as she pushed the burned book back onto the sill. Satisfied that it would not fall, she took a few steps back, leapt, and, both hands planted at the top, swung herself back up in one smooth motion. Sirius raised his eyebrows in surprise before approaching the window himself.

"He's still trying..." Remus noted with something that almost resembled a smile. From somewhere beyond his range of vision, he heard Lily Evans snort openly.

"If he doesn't know how much Galatea detests him, he'll find out soon!"

Sirius gave the wall a calculating look. The sill was about five feet, eight inches from the floor. He didn't know how she hopped a wall three inches taller than herself so fluidly, but he was determined not to be beaten by her.

He bent his knees and jumped. He managed to get his head, shoulders, and elbows on the ledge, but could not seem to pull himself up. His legs scrambled to find a foothold, but there were none to be found. The rapid pushing of his feet against the stone wall gave him a few inches' boost, which he used to pull himself up. As soon as his bulging, trembling forearms had pulled his torso above the ledge, he felt confident enough to look at her. She replied to his broad grin with a scowl. He pulled himself up entirely. Although he hadn't gotten up as gracefully as she, he was pleased with his performance.

As soon as his rear touched the stone she growled a sharp 'Get off' at him. He smirked.

"If you didn't want me up here, you would have pushed me down when you had the chance."

"Hmph." Galatea withdrew her wand from her pocket.

"Going to hex me, are you?"

But she ignored him. She instead tapped the cover of the scorched album.

"_Rededi memoriam_." She uttered. The cover became just as it was before.

"Well that's nifty. Where'd you learn that spell?" Sirius inquired, trying to recapture her attention. He leaned over to admire her handywork.

"I made it up." She opened the book without looking at him, tapped one of the singed photographs, and reiterated the spell.

"Another one? It seems like every month you come up with a new spell. I really admire that..."

"You admire anything with breasts, Sirius Black." She retorted, mending more photos. Sirius, always a glutton for attention, thought he would go mad if she didn't look at him.

"No, I mean it." His voice was suddenly calm. He took her free hand gently in his. She sunk her nails into his skin in retaliation, but he ignored it. His thumb rubbed her palm tenderly.

"Your hands are so rough," He said softly. "Not lady-like at all. How'd they get this way?"

"Mind your own business!" She seethed. Her head shot up as she attempted to pull her hand away, but Sirius was able to retain his gentle hold on it.

A third person with any brains would have easily drawn a connection between this and the mildly startled look on Galatea's face.

The truth, which she would never admit, was that she had been taken aback by the placid visage of Sirius Black. His obsidian eyes held the genuine sincerity she had so long believed he lacked, and the tender expression on his face made her far more aware of his handsomeness than she desired.

_But he's still a womanizing, bullying, self-centered, arrogant jerk._

"Let me go." She said weakly, digging her nails deeper into his fingers.

"Who's that?" He ignored her demand, seemingly unbothered by the pain. He pointed to one of the newly mended pictures. It was the picture of the woman with the sienna hair and the sharp eyes.

"If I tell you will you leave me alone?" She sounded more tired than angry now.

"Go for it."

"She's my mum." Galatea raked the picture with her violet eyes.

"She's pretty." Sirius said simply, leaning over the picture. After a few seconds of heavy inspection he deduced, "She doesn't look anything like you."

"Are you calling me ugly?" She seethed, her eyebrows knitted together with rage.

"Would Sirius Black like an ugly girl?"

"Oh, you are so _shallow_!"

Sirus heaved a sigh. Somehow she always took everything the wrong way. Sometimes he wondered if she did it just because she hated him.

"That's not what I meant. I was just trying to say you don't look anything alike physically. I mean- where'd you get these pretty eyes? Purple eyes are bloody rare, you know. And this shimmery, silvery hair- you definitely didn't get _that_ from your mum."

"Well then obviously I got it from my dad! Now leave me be!" Judging from the way she was glaring at him with her jaw set tight, Sirius had pushed her to a new level of anger.

"Who's your dad?"

_WHAM._

Galatea had kicked Sirius so hard in the side he scooted dangerously close to the edge of the window sill. He decided to jump rather than to fall, and landed cleanly on both feet. When he looked back up at her, she was positively bristling with fury.

"You're so nice to everybody else! Why are you mean to me?" Sirius demanded.

"Because you're an arrogant, bullying, inconsiderate bastard!"

"So is James!"

James looked positively appalled at this and silently promised to put bubotuber pus in Sirius's toothpaste the next time he had the chance.

"Well _James_ knows how to bloody _leave me alone_!"

Having nothing else to say, Sirius crossed the common room to sit next to James, but James scowled and turned away. Sirius looked baffled.

"And I don't like Potter either!" Galatea shouted at Sirius's back.

James looked like he had been slapped in the face for the second time that day. A few seats away, Lily howled with laughter.

James stopped giving Sirius the cold shoulder long enough to teasingly ask "Still think she likes you?"

"Oh, now I know _for sure_ she does," Sirius said. He summoned a butterbeer with his wand and took a sip.

"Sirius! Sirius Black!" Came a voice heavy with admiration. He had hoped it would be Galatea's, but it's owner turned out to be the prettiest of a group of fourth-year girls, Shannon McCourt. "Could you help us with our charms homework?"

"Sure, ladies, I'd be glad to help!" Sirius replied in an unnaturally loud voice. He was clearly attempting to make Galatea jealous, but she did not so much as glance at him.

Sirius put on his most suave expression as he entered the ring of fourth-year girls on the floor. He lied on his side with his head propped up by his elbow. Finding this an unsatifactory means of attracting Galatea's attention, he looked up at the pretty fourth-year that had called him over.

"May I?" He asked, swishing his dark hair in the direction of her lap. Shannon McCourt nodded eagerly, causing her blonde hair to fall over her face. He adjusted himself so that he lie on his back with his head in her lap, allowing her to comb his thick, soft hair with her fingers. The harem of fourth-years adjusted to sit around him like woshipers at a shrine.

"Now let's see that homework," One of the girls handed him her essay. Though he didn't read it thoroughly, he could tell the essay on Banishment Charms was perfect. He stole a look at Galatea. He had thought all that motion would attract her attention, but she still had her head buried in that damn album. Sirius frowned.

"This one's perfect. All of you copy this." He shoved the essay back into its composer's hands and got to his feet. Shannon looked confused and disappointed by his abrupt departure. She had opened her mouth to speak, but Sirius had already stamped off into the boys' dorm before she could utter a syllable.

_Please review! I think I'll probably put chapters 3 and 4 up together sometime this week._


	3. Whiskey, Mum? A Hidden Heart

_This chapter is mainly about Galatea, since the last two did Sirius more justice. This is the first, but certainly not the last, chapter that explores her character._

Chapter 3: Whiskey, Mum? A Hidden Heart

Galatea sat at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, pouring dregs of milk into her porridge. Suddenly, a fluttering of wings made her drop her spoon. She looked up apprehensively: the owls were coming in. Holding her breath as they passed over her, she jumped a little as one broke away from the mainstream and made a beeline for her. Her eyes darted to the right. She was sitting next to a third year she couldn't help but notice resembled a badger, with his thick, dark brows, angular eyes, and pointed nose.

_That owl is for Malcolm Shavers. It's not for me, it's for Malcolm Shavers._ She told her self desperately, barely able to hear her own thoughts over the thumping in her chest.

The owl made its descent, angled to land perfectly on her left. She watched, praying to any higher being that it would make the subtle change in its flight path needed to land next to Malcolm.

_Damn._

The magnificent Swamp owl landed perfectly on her left without knocking over her goblet or touching any of the food. It stood rigid, straight-backed, and proud. On one leg was a lumpy sack of what Galatea knew was likely to be Galleons, while tied to the other was a tightly rolled scroll of parchment. It extended the leg with the Galleons to her first, patiently waiting to be relieved of the heavier burden. She gently pushed the leg back down without removing the sack.

She met the owl's lamp-like, lemon yellow eyes with narrowed, violet ones, seemingly initiating a battle of wills.

"Take this stuff back, Pallas." She commanded. The owl replied with a sharp clicking of its beak, it's yellow eyes giving her an admonitory glare that was almost human-like.

"I don't know, tell them you couldn't find Hogwarts!"

At this the owl gave a small shriek and flared its wings, miraculously not knocking anything over in a great show of discipline. Galatea understood the bird's fury at her suggestion. For an owl in the employ of a wizard, not being able to find Hogwarts was the equivalent of a human not being able to find sand at a beach. To do this would surely result in the termination of the owl's employment and would ensure it was never taken in by another family ever again.

"Ok, ok stop!" Galatea pleaded in a defeated tone. The bird instantly became still, extending its leg with a look of what Galatea was confident was smugness. She untied the bag of money and put it in the pocket of her robes.

"You can take that back, can't you?" She gestured to the scroll. The owl's beak parted in preparation for another shriek.

"Ok, I get it, I get it! You're not horsing around." She hastily untied the scroll, shooting the messenger defiant looks as she did so. The bird remained planted even after she had laid the scroll next to her plate, clicking it's beak expectantly.

"Why are you_ still here_?" She snapped. The bird clicked in the direction of her plate. "Oh, so you're above helping me, but you're not above eating my food, huh?"

She reluctantly fed the owl three pieces of bacon off her plate. Before it had even swallowed the last bit, Galatea was shooing it away.

"Get out of here, you surly little pigeon, get!"

Pallas the owl hooted roughly and nipped her ear in a display of 'tough love' before taking flight.

Galatea eyed the scroll warily, particularly the _H.S_. written in thin, curly calligraphy. The _HS_ stood for Helvetia Stapleton, her mother.

Tucking it under her plate so that she could not see it, Galatea returned to her porridge. She was reaching for a jug of pumpkin juice when she caught a pair of vivid, bottle-green eyes seemingly waiting to catch hers from across the table.

"Are you going to drill me on History of Magic tonight for our O.W.L.s, Lily?"

"The O.W.L.s are weeks away, Galatea. Do you really need to start studying for History of Magic now? I mean, you've got a decent grade up to now, right?"

"Yeah, but I also have to study for Potions, and Astronomy and I'm near flunking Arithmancy and Muggle Studies- which I'll need help with too, by the way." Which was true. While Galatea was very good with her wand, confident that she could get O's in Charms, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts, she was very bad at the 'buckle-down-and-study' courses. She was good with plants and so thought anything below an E in Herbology would be a surprise, but she really did not understand the theory behind Potions the way Lily did, making her performance about as consistent as a roll of the dice.

"Sure, we can study for Astronomy tonight. Will you help me with Defense Against the Dark Arts?" Lily asked, nodding encouragingly.

"Oh, Lily, you already know how to do all the spells!" Galatea exclaimed, feeling strangely embarrassed that Lily was asking for help just to cover up the academic gap between the two.

"But your trigger fingers are so much better!"

"Trigger... fingers?" Galatea repeated, scrunching her brows and squinting in confusion.

"Oh, sorry- Muggle term. It means your reaction time and hand-eye coordination are good. Comes from Muggle gun-usage." Lily looked up at the cloudless azure ceiling, wagging her finger thoughtfully.

"You should probably know that for the O.W.L.. But what I meant was that I may need to be prepared for a combat situation, and you're probably the best duelist in our year." Galatea beamed so that it seemed one could actually pluck sparkling amethysts from her eyes. This fact made her feel closer to being Lily's equal.

"Do you really think that they'll have us duel as part of the test?" Galatea wondered aloud.

"I don't know. I've never had an older sibling or parent come through Hogwarts before, so I don't have anyone to tell me what the exam's like." Lily replied, openly noting her Muggle parentage. While Galatea was not Muggle-born, she was not bothered by them in the least bit.

"We could ask. I mean, my cousin Herbert is getting ready for his N.E.W.T.s." Galatea craned her neck, trying to spot her cousin at the Ravenclaw table. "We could probably get some Every Flavor Beans out of him, too. I'm sure Great-Uncle Bertie probably sent him a ton."

"Nah." Lily shook her head, making her flaming-red hair swish. "I think I prefer the mystery, and I'm not really fond of the Beans. Have you ever tried Sock?"

Galatea blanched.

"I've tried them all, but I can tell the good ones form the bad ones by sight." Her face took on a green tint at the memory of all the times Great-Uncle Bertie had asked his family members to taste-test a new flavor.

"Even _vomit_?" Lily hung to the first clause, her voice was mingled with awe and pity.

"_Even_ vomit. And all the prototypes for it." Galatea turned a more distinct green.

"I'm sorry." Lily whispered, donning the same expression one might wear upon seeing a homeless child. In the blink of an eye she had snapped backed to normal. "Well, let's finish eating, shall we?"

"I think I'm done," Galatea covered her porridge with a napkin, having found its appearance growing ever closer to that of vomit. "I'm going to go get my books and I'll see you in the dungeons."

She had swung one leg over the bench when the platters and plates vanished, signifying the end of breakfast. The removal of her platter revealed the scroll she had received earlier, which she quickly seized and jammed into her pocket. She bolted up to the common room to get her books before flying down into the dungeons for Potions.

"Good morning, Professor Slughorn." Galatea heaved.

"Good morning, Miss Stapleton. Not to worry, I won't be marking you as late." Said a rather portly man in burgundy robes. He looked happy to see her, but his face soon changed to one of mild disappointment. "I shall see you at the next club meeting, correct? Your cousin Herbert said you were sick. I'm good friends with your Uncle Bertie Bott, you know. Good man, good man..."

_Nice save, Herbert! I owe you one._ She had, of course, skipped the meeting because hearing Slughorn talk more than once a day was guaranteed to drive a sane man bonkers.

"Yes, Professor Slughorn, I know." Galatea was careful to hide her rolling eyes as she took the place next to Lily and across from Carrie Mindleshaw. At the table across from them, Sirius, James, Remus and Peter were stationed. Behind her was a group of Slytherins.

"On page 521 of your books are the guidelines for a very complicated Stimulating Potion. Supplies are in the cupboard, and you may have until the end of the period."

Galatea read the first line carefully, casually lighting a fire under her cauldron. Standing up to get the ingredients, her hand brushed the rim of the scroll in her pocket. She felt an unpleasant squeezing feeling in her stomach as she headed to the supply closet.

I hate letters...

With her mind darting from the letter to the boiling cauldron in front of her, when it came time to add the ingredients, she often found she had not gathered them all. She dashed back to the cabinet several times. On one of these occasions she heard a low clunk near her cauldron and when she turned around she saw the hand of Remus Lupin fly hastily back into its master's pocket. Then Sirius mumbled something to him Galatea could not hear. As the greasy-haired boy Galatea knew as Severus Snape went to the front to turn in his sample, she saw him pour a pickle-green liquid she was sure wasn't on the list of ingredients into her cauldron. She herself contemplated being offended, but someone obviously had beat her to the punch, for she distinctly saw a wand point out from under the Marauders' table, pointed directly at Severus. She bounded over just in time to press the tip of her wand into the base of Sirius Black's skull. 

"Don't." Her voice was venom. One of the things she hated most about Sirius and James was the way they picked on people, especially Severus. While she was not exactly chummy with Snape, she believed he was entitled to some level of respect.

"Did you see what he _did_?" Sirius seethed in a whisper, righteously angry in her stead.

"That's none of your busin-"

She pulled her wand away from his neck and scurried back to her table, whistling inconspicuously. Sirius's wand disappeared into his robes. Slughorn surely would have caught them in their malice-driven stalemate if not that Slughorn had a lot of body to turn around, giving them plenty of warning as to when he was checking on the class.

Galatea looked down at her potion, prepared to receive bottom marks for the day. Slughorn was coming around. He gave Severus and Lily their usually praises, nodded at Remus's work, and said nothing to James and Sirius. He heavily advised Pettigrew and a Slytherin boy to work much harder. As he stopped before her cauldron, he popped a piece of yellow hard-candy into his mouth. With a disturbing smack of his lips he spoke.

"Excellent, Miss Stapleton, excellent! Must've been the sickness that brought your performance down last week!"

Galatea's jaw dropped. She checked, double-checked, triple-checked the appearance of her potion with the book's description.

"It's- it's... perfect?"

"Yes, of course it is!" Slughorn beamed, ignoring her confused tone. He gave her a clap on the back, nearly knocking over the stunned young witch. "At this rate your bound to come out with an O on your O.W.L., Miss Stapleton!"

"Thanks?" Galatea was still incredulous. She managed to regain herself enough to bottle her potion and walk out of the classroom beside Lily.

"Did Severus Snape just _help_ me?" Galatea blurted on their way to Charms. She did not mention that Remus had helped her also, believing that he did it because of Sirius's goading.

"Yeah, he does that every now and then." Lily was looking dead ahead, and her lips seemed to be getting thinner.

"What? Why?"

"I think it's his way of supporting and encouraging your loathing of Black and Potter." Lily responded, still fixated on the end of the hallway.

"Well you hate them too, why doesn't he help y-?"

"Because you're a pure-blood." Lily's voice was icy-cold and stinging.

Galatea knew that Severus did not like muggle-borns, and felt like the world's biggest prat for touching on such a sensitive subject for Lily. She armed herself with a flattering lie, afraid she had vexed Lily.

"No, I'm pretty sure it's just because you're already brilliant at Po-"

"_It's because you're a pure-blood_." Lily's voice was frightening as she snatched open the door to Charms, snatching the smile off Galatea's face as well.

Galatea felt she'd redeemed herself by the end of the day. She and Lily had both mastered the new Flying Charm on the first try in Charms, leaving them both in significantly better moods, and nothing else seemed to go awry that day. In fact, Galatea would have called it a very good day, had she not heard the sound of parchment giving way beneath her body as she changed into her nightclothes. Her stomach sank beneath her heavy dread.

_I forgot about that letter._

She hastened into her palest-pink nightgown. She had unraveled the scroll part of the way before letting it furl back up.

"Before I do this, let me just get..." She whispered to herself. She pulled a wooden box out from under her bed before returning to her bed, hidden from view by scarlet curtains. Opening the box carefully revealed a full bottle of firewhiskey sitting on a bed of cloth. She gently lifted the bottle like a baby from its cradle, popped the cork, and drank deeply for a second. She situated the bottle between her legs before drawing back the drapes around her bed a little. It was still light out, she did not have to read by wandlight. She had intended to use this time to study, but she had to get this letter out of the way. Taking another draft of the firewhiskey, which was now warming her insides, she began to read.

_Dear Gallie-ko, (ko! that's a cute word I picked up in Japan w/Dad)_

_How are you Gallie? We all miss you here. Dad and I just got back from Japan. We got you something while we were there. Guess what? Daddy wants to have another kid, and I think it's a wonderful idea! What do you think? Listen, I'm really sorry to tell you this, but we won't be able to pick you up from Platform 9 3/4 at the end of the year. _

Galatea swallowed another dreg of whiskey.

_Your father wants to take a trip to South Africa as a second honeymoon, and I just couldn't say no! Don't worry though, you and your little brother will be staying at Uncle Herbie's with your cousin Herbert, and maybe Great-Uncle Bertie will come and visit you! (That always makes me laugh :) ) I hope you're staying out of trouble, honey._

Galatea took so big a gulp it hurt her throat on the way down. A few drops landed on her front, one particularly large bead traveled between her breasts down to her navel, creating a pink spot on her nightgown.

_Your dad says that your good looks won't get you out of trouble everytime! Since you're at Hogwarts, I know you haven't been drinking (Although I know you wouldn't drink even if you had the opportunity because you promised you wouldn't and your my good little girl!)._

This was as far as Galatea got before her curtains were drawn back. She stuffed the letter beneath her pillow.

"Hey, Galatea!" The face of Lily Evans appeared between the draperies. "Are we going to stud- Is that firewhiskey?"

Galatea nodded. She was feeling really loose... and really, really hot... and didn't give a rat's ass about getting detention from a prefect.

"Gimme some." Lily said casually, reaching for the bottle. Galatea handed it to her as she sat down on the edge of the bed. Lily took a healthy swig before passing it back. Galatea micked her action, but when she passed it back, Lily declined.

"No thanks, I just wanted a sip."

And there lay the difference between Galatea and Lily. Lily would never go to the extremes- Lily would not get drunk. Lily had no balls.

Galatea took another sip, but stopped mid-swig- Lily was scrutinizing her face.

"You're all pink in the face, how much have you had to drink?" Lily asked, eyeing the level of the bottle. Galatea just shrugged.

"Why are you drinking so much? What's the matter?" Lily asked, her emerald eyes radiating almost tangible concern.

"Nothing." Galatea replied, smacking her lips in the exact way she despised when others did it.

"You always say 'nothing'," Lily sighed sadly. "Well, are going to study tonight or no?"

"No, I think I'm going to study on my own."

_Why do I feel so bad all of a sudden, so guilty? _Galatea asked herself, her throat burned, and she wasn't sure it was from the whiskey anymore.

"You know, learn the basics so I don't completely embarrass myself when you quiz me." She tried to chuckle, but choked on her own laugh. In truth, Galatea was feeling very ashamed of herself for reasons that would not form words in her head. All she knew at the moment was that she wanted Lily to disappear very badly.

Lily seemed to read her mind.

"Ok." She gave Galatea a hurt look. "Don't drink all that whiskey, please. Save it for our next nightcap."

Both tried to smile, but neither succeeded. Lily disappeared beyond the curtain.

Galatea reached for the letter, but reflexively jammed it deeper under the pillow.

_Gotta do it now._ She told herself. She seized the letter and forced herself to open it, reading the last few lines.

_Your father says he is feeling very neglected. He wants you to write to him and tell him all about your accomplishments! He says you never write to him, and the last thing he heard about you from you was about that club you tried to start that nobody joined. What was it called? Anyway, write to him because he says he feels like your giving him the cold shoulder (but you're not, right?) and he'll start taking out of your allowance._

Galatea began to drink to deeply she almost drowned herself. She was gasping for breath when she finally tore the bottle from her lips.

_Hope to hear from you soon,_

_Your loving Mum._

"I can't do this... right now... I'll reply later... Arithmancy... now..." Galatea heaved. That painful lump in her throat seemed to have split and was now trying to push itself out of her eyes, blurring her view of _Intermediate Arithmancy_.

* * *

Lily's grass-green eyes pried themselves open. There was a foul smell in the air, and there was the sound of muffled crying. She sat bolt-upright in bed. 

"Galatea?" She said in a barely audible whisper, fearing she would wake her other dormmates if Galatea hadn't already. She drew back the drapes from her bed. She swung her legs over the bedside, but pulled them back up when they touched the wet floor. There was something wet and shiny trailing across the hard wood. It smelled foul. It was the reek of alcohol.

"_Scourgify_." Lily whispered to the floor. Her eyes followed the trail up the scarlet curtain surrounding Galatea's bed, which now carried an amorphous wet spot. She tiptoed to Galatea's bed, pushing back the curtain.

She found Galatea curled at the foot of her bed, her face was buried in a pillow, emitting muffled moans. Her body shook with what Lily knew had to be sobbing.

"Galatea!" Lily whispered desperately. "Galatea, what's the matter? Come on, take your head from that pillow!"

She tried to pull Galatea up herself, but Galatea, despite being smaller, did not budge.

_She's so strong... _Lily gave pulled with all her might, tearing Galatea from the bed. Her cry filled the dorm. Out of sheer instinct, Lily clapped her hand over Galatea's mouth. Across the room, Maeve Winchcombe moved but did nto awaken. Lily turned her frightened eyes on Galatea, ready to hush her into silence, but what she saw made her want to cry herself.

Galatea's face was pink and wet from drunkeness and crying, making her hair by comparison not seem silvery but white like an old woman's. Her face was glossy and hot. Her upper lip was moist with snot. Hot tears rolled down her face and over Lily's hand. But the part that made Lily feel the worst was her eyes. They were red and had a distinct, washed-out, dull appearance about them, but were somehow alive with misery, fear, and shock at the same time. Lily did not know what could happened, but she knew they could not talk there.

"C'mon, up you go. We gotta get outta here, Galatea. We don't want to wake everyone up, do we?" She whispered, pulling Galatea of the bed. She kept her hand clamped over her now compliant friend's mouth. While she had progressed past the sobbing stage, Lily feared that even the softer whimpers she was emitting would make the rest of the fifth year girls. Lily carefully made her way down the stairs, supporting Galatea all the way. Finally they made it to the common room, but Lily, feeling paranoid, made for the bathroom.

"Rilly!" Galatea pleaded from behind that soft hand. "Rilly boove oar hend!"

"What?"

Before she could react, the prefect felt what seemed like a stream of hot soup hit her hand. She moved her hand reflexively, and Galatea Stapleton vomited on the threadbare rug of the Gryffindor common room. No longer receiving full support from Lily, Galatea fell to the floor just before the second wave, getting the thick, bilious-yellow mess all down her nightgown and in her moonlight-colored hair.

Lily quickly scourgified the floor and Galatea's robes. She flicked her wand again, summoning the empty vase on the other side of the room. She put it in Galatea's hands and dragged her to the bathroom. Galatea scrambled to a toilet as the third wave came. A long silence existed between the two, punctuated only by Galatea's heaves.

"You know... what I hate?" Galatea breathed. Her voice bounced from porcelain toilet to porcelain toilet, filling the empty bathroom.

"What, Galatea?" Lily inquired, hoping that this would be the time when her friend finally opened up to her.

"How much... I admire you..." Galatea coughed. The waves were getting less intense.

"What? That's nothing to hate." Lily replied, slumping down by the sink. She even let out a ghost of a laugh. "I admire you, too..."

"Don't bullshit me!" In the daytime, among the bustling students, no one probably would have heard her, but to Lily, in this dark, empty bathroom, her voice seemed louder than the angriest thunder.

"What?" Lily's voice was filled with bemusement and hurt.

"Don't." Galatea croaked, still bent over the toilet. "Don't be modest for the sake of my pride. You're the better witch- you're the better _person_..."

The motherly Lily could almost smell Galatea's fresh tears.

"Dammit Lily!" Galatea fists crashed against the toilet seat. "_Why_... why are you so much better than me?"

"Galatea that's rubbish!" Lily cried sincerely. "We've always been equals as witches! I mean sure I can tell you about the Third Great Goblin War, but what would that matter if we were fighting dark wizards or healing the sick or whatever we're going to do? You can duel with the best of them- do you think that's not admirable? And you _create_ spells! Anything I could do with a potion you could probably do with your wand! And as for me being the better person- that's ridiculous! You would do the same thing for me if I was in this situation!"

"So what?" Galatea bawled. "You're a better quality of person! I mean, you're so respectable! You're smart, you're beautiful, you never have to throw a punch-"

"I never throw a punch because I can't fight to save my life! You, Galatea, you're so strong! You can go blow for blow with the meatheads! You're the exact kind of athlete every girl wants to be! Not an athlete like Potter, who can only catch a ball, but you can really do things with your own strength! I admire that! And you _are_ smart! Not to mention I don't see myself winning any beauty contests against you soon! You're so pretty it's almost unnatural!" Lily was out of breath when she finished.

"But you have poise, grace, and dignity," Galatea sniffed, spitting into the bowl. "You're a respectable lady. I'm in detention every other week- I'm contemptable."

"Fuck poise, grace, and dignity." Lily whispered defiantly, crawling over to the crumpled form huddled in the stall. "If you don't think you have them, well then guess what- you don't need them, and neither do I. If someone as amazing as you doesn't have them, then they mean nothing."

Galatea turned, her lip trembling and fresh tears forming.

"Lily!" She said throwing herself into the redhead's arms.

"Just tell me what's the matter!" Lily cooed with forceful desperation. Galatea sniffed with conviction.

"Nothing." She hoarsed, getting up.

"Wait, your hair..." Lily whispered, pointing her wand at the long silver locks. In an instant the filth was gone.

_Why can't you ever just tell me what's wrong? You always say nothing._

They walked side-by-side in silence back to their beds. Lily helped Galatea in, pulled up the covers, and did her a favor by corking the now near-empty firewhiskey bottle.

"Don't drink this stuff anymore." Lily warned gently, putting the bottle back in it's case. Galatea looked at Lily with watery, plum eyes.

"Lily?" She moaned, barely open to part her lips or eyes.

"Yeah?" Gloomy and tired, Lily shut the box.

"We can still be friends, right?" Her voice was only a whimper.

"No problem." Lily choked. She wanted to smile at Galatea, to see those violet eyes dance a little in the starlight, but her eyes were already closed, her breathing already regular. As she motioned for her own bed, Lily spotted a roll of parchment, dotted with teardrops, atop Galatea's now reeking, moist sheets.

_Mum,_

_You'll be glad to know that I haven't been in detention for two months. I haven't had anything to drink in a year, just as I promised. Don't share this with Dad, but I REALLY don't think it's a good idea for you to have another baby._

The letter ended there. Lily stored this in her memory for later before placing the parchment exactly as she found it. She she lay in bed, she mulled over the events of the last hour in her bed.

_Your mom may have another baby? Is that what's got you so upset? _Lily pondered, still thinking of it even as she passed into the world of dreams.

* * *

In the morning, Galatea finished her letter, feeling oddly refreshed when she woke up and even more relieved when she had finished it. 

_Mum,_

_You'll be glad to know that I haven't been in detention for two months. I haven't had anything to drink in a year, just as I promised. Don't share this with Dad, but I REALLY don't think it's a good idea for you to have another baby. Think of the last time- not that I'm not grateful for my little brother! Anyways, not much is going on here at Hogwarts. Tell Dad not to be mad at me, and that I'll send him a nice, long letter to tell him all about the O.W.L.s after I've taken them. Tell Tiberius I said hello._

_Galatea_

_P.S.- The club was called P.E. club._

In the owlery, she tied the letter to her screech owl Mithridates and sent him off. She returned to the common room, delighted to see a thicket of red hair sticking out from behind one of the knobbly, old chairs.

"Oi, Lily!" She chirped, leaning over the chair to look down at Lily.

"Morning!" The young witch replied, surprised but delighted to see the lights back in those amethyst eyes. That broad smile was contagious, too.

They did not speak or think of the previous night's happenings for some time. Galatea managed not drink for the rest of the school year.

_But you are sadly mistaken if you think this means all is fine and dandy. I'll have chapter 4 up soon! Please review._


	4. Under the White Moon

_Here it is! Enjoy it._

Chapter 4: Under the White Moon

Remus Lupin looked up at the darkening, periwinkle sky, awaiting with dread the ascending of a most unholy, most wrathful eye- the moon. The moon was his fated Keeper, and tonight he would see it in all its belligerent glory. He turned away from the window.

"The moon is supposed to rise at 9:30 tonight, guys." He said solemnly.

"Don't worry about it, Moony!" James said with an enthusiasm that sharply contrasted Lupin's somberness. "We'll get to the Shrieking Shack problem-free! I got the cloak ready and everything."

He clapped Remus on the back in a supportive way, bringing the young werewolf from his thoughts. Remus cast him a wary look.

"Relax, it'll be fine. You do this every month without a hitch, why do you always worry?"

"I'm afraid, my friend," Remus sighed a sigh that seemed to have been repeated many times. A crease formed on his face, a small wrinkle that would one day become a permanent frown line. "That you have only proved that you have no idea what it is like to be a werewolf."

James gave a mock-thoughtful expression, tapping his chin as though thinking with all his brainpower.

"No, no I don't. But all you've proved is that you don't place enough trust in us." He patted Lupin's shoulder. "We've done this before, nothing's gonna go wrong, I promise. Go relax- have a snack, take a nap."

"I'd rather not." Remus replied, something like the faintest laugh coming out with his words. He sat upon his bed and drew a book onto his lap, trying to follow James' advice as best he could. Still feeling unsettled despite his most genuine efforts, he turned to Sirius. "Will you be coming too?"

"Of course!" Sirius said, pushed into a sitting position by sheer enthusiasm. "I spent five years of my life working on-"

His eyes scanned the room with utmost caution. Besides the four Marauders, there was a fifth boy who shared that dorm room, but he was nowhere to be found.

"-on _that thing_." He whispered. "Do you think I'd ever miss an opportunity to try it out?"

With a grin, Sirius disappeared. In his place was a large black dog, but in less than half a blink, Sirius the human had reappeared.

"Don't do that!" Lupin hissed in a voice so low Sirius contemplated turning back into a dog just so he could hear him. "The last thing we need is for people to find out we're really three unregistered Animagi and a werewolf!"

None of them had ever heard Remus angry before, much less assert himself so boldly, but it was that overwhelming note of nervousness took so much away from his argument.

"Was anybody standing there?" Sirius snapped. "No? Then there's no problem!"

"B-b-b-but he's r-right, Sirius!" Peter squeaked.

Sirius shot him a silencing look. Remus gave a defeated sigh.

"And stop sighing all the time!" Sirius barked.

"Just shut up!" James commanded. "I know everyone's on edge because we've never had to leave while the sky was so light, but we've got the Invisibility Cloak, what else do we need?"

No one replied.

"Exactly. So just try to keep yourselves busy for the next couple of hours." James pleaded, but he was looking up at the moon as though trying to strike a silent deal.

* * *

"Alright you guys." James said. The sky was darkening but it wasn't too dark yet, and now was there best opportunity to move. "I've given us a solid hour and a half to get out to the Shrieking Shack before the moon rises. The common room should be empty, what with most people trying to get some shut-eye before O.W.L.s." 

He chanced a look at Myron Lynch, the other fifth-year boy, who was sleeping, unaware, in his bed.

"Padfoot, Wormtail- you're under the Cloak with me. Moony, you go ahead and open the portrait for us. From there, it's all the usual."

The four moved out with Moony in the lead. Leading those under the Cloak was Wormtail, a choice that was more tactical than hierarchical. James and Sirius both knew that if either of them were allowed to set the pace, Wormtail would surely fall behind or stumble in his attempt to keep up, exposing them all.

And so they generously let him set the pace. They crept through the abandoned common room down the darkened portrait hole. Things were going perfectly.

Suddenly, Remus went down with a thud. Peter, whose reflexes were about as sharp as a ball of dough, tripped over Remus, taking the Invisibility Cloak down with him but not James and Sirius. Lupin gave a groan. A squeak bounced through the corridor.

"What the-? Lumos!" The tip of Sirius wand ignited, bringing light to the scene.

It was a girl who had emitted the piercing note. Remus had fallen across her lap. She was wearing her daywear, which, considering it had been a beautiful Sunday, consisted of black denim capris and a simple sky blue shirt. Her hair was like fine strands of moonlight. She had big eyes the color of a Crocus.

Galatea Stapleton.

"Remus?!" She gasped.

Remus did not respond, but rather turned to James and Sirius with a look that both begged for help and seemed betrayed by the fact that both their reassurances that 'things would go smoothly' had been false. Sirius felt a stab of guilt that he was sure James was sharing at the moment.

"Of all the people..." Sirius moaned.

Galatea gaze transferred onto the two boisterous Marauders, drawn by the light.

"And you two, too? What the hell is going on?" She demanded, going from them to the crestfallen boy in her lap and back.

"We should be asking you that!" James said, pulling the stunned Remus to his feet and dusting him off. The petrified expression did not change, but it seemed Remus had begun to sweat.

"Galatea," Sirius kneeled down beside her, speaking in a loverly tone. He picked up her hand, but she snatched it away. James knew two things about Sirius- he liked girls, and he was clever as hell- and so James couldn't quite tell whether Sirius was trying to distract her or whether he was just picking a very inopportune time to hit on her. "Don't get mad at me, but I'm going to have to ask you to get lost."

"As if!" She snapped. "You're not in any position to tell me what to do!"

James seemed very frustrated at this.

"But Remus is!" James retorted after some thought. "He'll give you detention if you don't disappear _now_!"

He pointed to Lupin, whose collar was by now very damp-looking.

_Poor guy._ James thought. _Galatea's one of the few people that's nice to him. If she knew he was a werewolf she'd..._

"Go ahead!" She folded her arms. "I've already got detention this week for beating up the Ravenclaw Quidditch captain anyway!"

There was silence save for the inaudible sound of minds cranking out come-backs.

"And besides," Galatea seemed to have thought about it a little more. "Any kind of shady activity you drag Remus into compromises his prefectship!"

"Who said we were doing anything shady?" Sirius asked angrily. Underneath, however, he was laughing at the irony. She had accused them of dragging Remus into this endeavor, but it was actually _for_ him that they were all doing this.

"Then what _are_ you doing?" Her cheeks were getting pinker with frustration.

"What are _you_ doing?!" James ruffled his hair not out of pompousness but out of sheer anger.

"Remus!" She demanded, rounding on the prefect. "Tell me what's going-"

The quiet boy's oak-hued hair was plastered to his forehead. The collar of his white shirt was transparent from sweat. With a startled, pitying look, she pulled out a white handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his brow. He avoided her eyes at all costs, looking desperately up at the cieling as though hoping to evaporate.

Galatea rounded on the two angrily, shooting one last pitying look at Remus.

"I'll cut you a deal. I'll go my way, you go yours. No questions asked, nobody mentions anything that happened tonight." She stated so firmly that the thought of Galatea as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot popped into Sirius' mind.

"We don't have to do as you say!" James protested.

"Take... the offer..." Lupin breathed. He was looking very pale and very faint.

James looked at Galatea defiantly. "We're only agreeing to this because _he_ said so!"

"_James_!" Lupin cried desperately, his voice reduced to a whisper.

"Okay, okay..." He conceded, covertly kicking the spot where he knew Wormtail lay hidden. As always, Wormtail had done an excellent job of avoiding trouble, but for once, James thought this was a good thing. The last thing they needed was for Stapleton to know he had an Invisibility Cloak.

The four of them- or at least it appeared, for James had clearly seen Peter's feet as he'd clambered out- exited the Gryffindor tower. It made it all the easier that the Fat Lady was gone. The Marauders and Galatea stood facing each other, at a crossroads.

"I'll go right then," Galatea suggested. James opened his mouth, but she had already rounded the corner and was gone.

"Well, let's go," James said simply. He felt around in the darkness. "Gimme my Cloak, Wormtail."

"Wait a sec," Sirius whispered, following her path with his eyes to the corner. "I wanna see where she went..."

"_Sirius_..." Lupin pleaded with the same voice as someone who had to go to the bathroom very badly.

"What does it matter?" James said hurriedly. Moony now looked so distraught James thought he might pass out.

"There's no staircase in that direction," Sirius noted. "There's _nothing_ in that direction. How is she going to get off this floor?"

"That's not really our concern at the moment!" The Chaser said, pointing at Lupin.

"Right." Sirius said dutifully. "I'll be back in two seconds."

Sirius darted to the corner. There was no trace of her. His mind churned as he tried to figure out how she could have possibly disappeared. He was still thinking about it as he, Remus, James, and Peter got under the Cloak, marching double-time and taking the short-cut on the sixth floor to save time.

The Marauders slipped through the doors of the Entrance Hall into the cool, springtime air. James slipped the Cloak into his pocket.

"Alright, let's do it." James said. His companions nodded, and in an instant three of them became a stag, a dog, and a rat.

The rat scurried up the stag's back, and the four Marauders were off. As they crossed the field to the Shrieking Shack, the Animagi heard the faintest of tunes in the air. It almost could have been a breeze, but it was too melodious. Padfoot and Prongs paused, and Remus mimicked them after just one step, looking about wildly.

Having been alerted, Padfoot's gaze zeroed in on one of the trees that dotted the grounds. Sitting in the shadow of the tree, well-hidden from any eyes that might chance a look upon the grounds from the castle, was a familiar beauty he admired, one he had in fact seen not too long ago. The big, black dog ambled over toward her, but when he heard the 'pet-pet' of hooves and trainers behind him he about faced and pawed the ground adamantly. They seemed to get the message and journeyed on without him.

It was some time before Galatea finally heard the behemoth moving in the shadows near her. When she saw him, she gasped, and a high note escaped her flute. He could smell her fear, hear her baited breath, and so he stretched his front legs forward, bowed his snout, and waited. She spared a moment to doubt his trustworthiness before finally gracing his long snout with the touch of her fingertips.

Sirius instantly nuzzled into the caress. Galatea, tickled by his soft nose, laughed softly and stroked the crown of his head. Sirius seized the opportunity to tilt his head so that her fingers tread behind his ears. He wanted very badly to make the best of this moment, to enjoy this gentle Galatea that he could see and hear, but never touch, never talk to. For as long as he was Padfoot and not Sirius Black, she did not hate him, and he was free to enjoy her laughter, her caresses, her affections. He wondered if he would ever be able to redeem himself in her eyes. He knew he was not the most pure-hearted person in the world, but wished she would see that he was not the worst. He laid his tar-hued paws in her lap and rested his head atop them. At the edge of the Forbidden Forest, three white blotches paced among the trees as though waiting for something. The black canine closed its eyes to them, the better to envision the fantasy in which he lay in her lap as a man. It unfolded like a map, and soon the sun had come out in hopes of playing in their paradise... and James... and Remus...

_Remus._ Sirius remembered. 

The black dog ripped itself from her gentle strokes, drawing level with her gorgeous face. It seemed to say 'What is it, Lassie?', but with all the gentleness of a passing cloud. The mighty, black creature met her eyes, and for what felt like the first time, Galatea Stapleton looked at Sirius Black with something other than contempt. His chops parted compulsively, and he tenderly, softly licked her lips.

She stared, spat on the ground, and wiped her mouth with her sleeve. She looked up as though expecting the dog to offer an explanation, but it merely shot her an abashed look and ran off in the direction of the rising moon. She did not watch it go, but picked up the flute and began to play again, letting the wind carry her tune into the forest where the white blotches danced.

Sirius dived down into the tunnel beneath the Whomping Willow, but proceeded more slowly as he approached the shack, not wanting to startle its inhabitants- the werewolf in particular. He entered without being attacked, but seemed to have entered a tension as thick as butternut soup. The reason lay with the humanoid wolf that was moving about the center of the room. Its movements were controlled, but its limbs were so long their seemed a certain drunkenness to its every move. There were brief moments where even the courageous Sirius found himself frightened by this. It seemed as though the beast would lash out at any moment, but in that monstrosity was the docile mind of Remus Lupin, and Sirius knew that it was the presence of the other three Marauders that allowed Lupin to dominate his own body when the full moon came.

Wormtail was already resting in a corner, delaying his shift in his oh-so-Peter-ish way. James, otherwise known as Prongs, had taken the first shift, but upon seeing the massive dog he tapped his hoof lightly upon the ground- careful to avoid agitating Moony- and trotted over to his own corner and began to rest. Without words, James had designated the first shift to Sirius, and Sirius had the distinct feeling that James was doing it to punish him for his tardiness. Not that it mattered- he would simply wake James up after he had minded Moony for three hours, and James would take the next shift while he rested.

* * *

In the morning, after only six hours of sleep, Padfoot felt something run across his snout. Irritated, he gnashed his teeth at it, but it squeaked and ran away, pulling him out of the world of dreams. Wormtail had stirred him before quickly becoming Peter Pettigrew once more. Sirius looked about him. On this first day of exams, none of them looked refreshed. Lupin in particular, now once more human, had the face of a man who had not slept in days. However, he did not have the panicked demeanor he had donned the night before, and to Sirius this was worth a few extra yawns and even a failed exam or two. 

"Damn, I'm sleepy," The black sheep of the Black family yawned, stretching his human limbs. James laughed.

"I've got it covered, mate," He withdrew from his cloak four vials. He handed one to each of them and kept one for himself. "Invigorating Potion." He said to Sirius and Peter's puzzled looks. "Should get us through the exams alright, but we'll probably conk out soon after."

Remus smiled slightly, but his mouth gaped, revealing his incredulity.

"Told you I had it all under control." James smirked as he withdrew his Invisibility Cloak from his pocket. "Let's get back up to the tower."

The four left the Shrieking Shack crouching very low, with Peter in the front, then James followed by Remus with Sirius bringing up the rear. After some bickering about visible feet, the majority ruled that a rat was perfectly inconspicuous and therefore Peter did not need to hide under the Cloak in order to get back into the castle. Having been pushed out, he assumed his rodent form and scurried up to the castle. Sirius followed his path with his eyes. The brown rat scurried across the field, passing the tree where Sirius had had his encounter with Galatea just the night before. He examined the tree in hopes of seeing her once more, but she was no longer there. He thought he heard a rustle in the leaves, but when his eyes caught up with his ears there was nothing to be seen, and the leaves did not rustle again.

When they finally reached the common room, Peter was already snoring lightly in his bed. At James' urging, Remus mimicked the action, climbing beneath the sheets and falling asleep almost instantly. Sirius was by all means ready to make the best of these few hours before exams with a nap, but James prevented him.

"What kept you?" Sirius had hoped James had forgotten.

"She was out there." Sirius confessed. "Galatea. She was the one playing the flute."

"Do you think she was trying to spy on us?" James inquired, narrowing his eyes at the door as though expecting to hear her breathing on the other side.

"No, she didn't even notice us-"

"You mean she didn't notice me, Wormtail, and Moony," James sneered in an unfriendly way. "I'd bet my broomstick you went to her."

"Yeah, I did." Sirius retorted, not liking James' attitude. "So what?"

"What did you do?" James said icily. "Snog her as a dog, because she won't let you touch her as a human?"

Sirius reddened, remembering what he had actually done.

"I bet she liked that, her being a bit-"

"What are you getting at?" Sirius seethed. For one white-hot moment he had contemplated decking James.

"You dicked over one of your best mates for a girl!" James lashed.

"I did not! I came, didn't I?" A look of dawning spread over Sirius's face. "You're jealous."

"You're nuts." James heaved an angry sigh. "Just don't go losing your head over her. I don't wanna lose my best mate."

"Is that all?" Sirius laughed openly. "I'm Sirius Black- if anyone loses their head around here, it'll be her when she realizes how badly she wants me."

The two laughed together, all qualms forgotten. In an instant they were asleep, and so well did they sleep that Remus almost had to hex them out of their beds for their exams.

_Chapter 5 will be up soon! Just on a side note, I do accept anonymous reviews, which means there's no excuse not to leave a comment ; ) I really appreciate every review I get, so even if it's just a silly comment on how dog spit is gross, please review!_


	5. A True Friend's Task

_Sorry to keep you waiting! Don't forget to review!_

Chapter 5: A True Friend's Task

"Blimey, what's this?" James Potter asked the air, picking up with his free hand an eggshell-colored envelope from the night stand between the beds of Sirius and Remus. In his other hand he held a broomstick; he had gotten up early to take what might be his last fly around the Quidditch pitch as a fifth year.

There was nothing on the front, so he flipped it over. "There's a G.S. on the back..."

Though he had merely been pondering this to himself, Sirius shot from his bed and seized the letter. Apparently he had only been resting his eyes, awake but not wanting to be conscious so early on a weekend, especially not the first weekend after exams. This philosophy of late weekend risings was tossed out the window, however, at the mere mention of the initials _G.S._.

"Told you she'd come around!" Sirius' chest puffed out as he mangled the envelope, extracting its contents with all the delicacy of a giant doing needlework.

"I don't believe it..." James' jaw hung slack as his best friend opened the letter, but when the letter's contents were revealed, he began to chortle uncontrollably. "Damn, looks like I don't have to believe it! The letter's not addressed to you, mate!"

When James had finally caught his breath, he reached over and shook the boy in the bed next to him. Remus Lupin opened his honey eyes.

"Remus..." James breathed, trying his best to control his laughter. "You... you've got mail..."

He reached to take the letter, but Sirius held on tight. He had the most disbelieving look upon his face. He appeared to have been stricken dumb. With a forceful jerk, James wrenched it free, passing both the shredded envelope and the note to the prefect. Remus's eyes scanned over the note quickly.

"Read it _aloud_," James goaded devilishly. Lupin blushed slightly, but cleared his throat.

Remus,

Today is the last trip to Hogsmeade for the whole year. Would you like to accompany me? If so, please meet me in the common room before you leave. I'll be waiting!

Yours truly,

Galatea Stapleton

By the time he had finished reading it, Remus had taken on a most tomato-like appearance. James made a distinctly feminine 'ooh'ing noise and ruffled Remus's hair in an elder-brotherly way.

"Congratulations, mate! You just got asked out on a date!"

"It smells like perfume..." Remus mumbled.

Sirius awakened from his stupor, scowling furiously. "Don't make a big deal of it, James, because Moony here's obviously-!"

"Going to politely turn her down." The werewolf finished quietly, his face sullen despite the smile.

James, bewildered, looked from one to the other, his eyebrows raised so high they threatened to disappear into his hair. Finally, leaning towards the handsome, dark-haired one, he said, none too discreetly,

"Can I talk to you?"

"Yeah." Sirius said grudgingly. James led him about five feet away, out of neither eyeshot nor earshot of Lupin.

"Are you bloody kidding me?" James exploded. "Remus never gets asked out, and when he finally does, you have to be a prat about it?"

"Don't call me a prat!" Sirius yelled. "He was the one who said he wasn't going!"

"And I'm not." Remus said firmly.

"Oh, yes you are!" James commanded. "Go clean up, because you _Are. Going. On. That. Date_."

"James..." Remus pleaded, begging the one who was as of right now the lesser of two evils not to put him in such a difficult position.

James marched over and seized his arm, pulling him so that they were mouth-to-ear.

"Go on your date, Moony. Galatea wants nothing to do with Sirius, and he's just going to have to accept that. He may pout about it for a couple of hours, but he's not going to stop being your friend- I promise- and I'm not going to let him spoil your fun, when you hardly get to have any."

Remus nodded obediently.

"What did you say to him?" Sirius said, acknowledging the new expression on Lupin's face.

"I am going to Hogsmeade with Galatea today, Sirius." Remus declared calmly.

Sirius became very stony faced and growled, but said nothing. He pulled out a pair of jeans and, pulling them over his pajama bottoms, made for the door.

"I'm outta here." He slammed the door shut behind him, startling Myron out of his sleep. The boy looked confusedly at the two, but James casually gestured for him to roll back over.

"He'll be fine," said James confidently. "We'll see you down in Hogsmeade today... or maybe we won't, if you're lucky..."

He winked and nudged the letter's unsuspecting recipient, but Lupin seemed unable to find an appropriate response. He was still staring in utter disbelief at the message on paper before him as though expecting it to disappear at any second when James and his broomstick left the room.

"Remus!" He had heard his name said so many times today he felt each utterance to be like a rock falling upon him, but this one fell on him like a crown of feathers from the sky. Suddenly he was not so tired of hearing his name.

Galatea had sprung from her chair and seemingly glided over to him, her silvery hair shining in the sunlight. She was looking prettier than usual, Remus thought, in her sugar pink sundress. It cinched at her waist, making an A-line from her hips down to her knees. She did not have the fullest bust, but her hips were perfectly shaped, her waist narrow. On closer inspection, Lupin found she was wearing a faint pink lip gloss, and was that pink eyeshadow? He was certain she never wore any of these on a normal day. He told himself. He gulped- she had gone all out. 

He instinctively drew his arms to himself, but one was hindered.

"Hmm?" Galatea turned her eyes on him, and he then realized that it was her arm looped through his that had kept him from himself.

"Oh- nothing." Remus mumbled, trying his best to reassemble his wits.

"Shall we go then?" She inquired, smiling so that the light danced across that pink lip gloss.

"Yeah," He said, avoiding her eyes by counting the subtle creases in her lips.

As they walked through the halls, a palisade of hands went up to mouths, behind which many whispers were exchanged. Several girls had huddled into their appropriate cliques and were whispering fervently while shooting glances at the two. Several boys cast looks that simply read 'impossible'. None of this surprised the young werewolf. The only thing between him, Remus John Lupin, and total rejection by the student body was the protection of James Potter and Sirius Black, the latter of whose friendship he was sure he was betraying by going out on this date. Galatea, on the other hand, was famously beautiful and sought after by many guys. The classic example was Brandon Arrafey, the Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain, by whom Galatea was unimpressed. Another thing that made the sight of them so astounding was, though Remus did not like the use of this word...

Galatea was very much _a prude_. In all the years she had been at Hogwarts, Galatea had not had a single boyfriend. She had turned down every single suitor. Remus only knew this because of Sirius, who had had a perpetual crush on Galatea Stapleton since their second year for reasons unclear. Though Sirius had dated many girls, some of whom had lasted longer than others (although Remus suspected none of them had gotten close enough to genuinely know the real Sirius), he became furious at the mere prospect of Galatea being asked out by anyone other than himself. Though Remus did not approve of this sort of hypocrisy, he felt that telling Sirius off for the things he did in his private life was a poor show of gratitude for all Sirius had done for him. Sirius's usual source for this information was, if Lupin recalled correctly, Maeve Winchcombe, a fellow fifth-year who was privy to that sort of information. Maeve had reported several times that Galatea had never had a boyfriend, a lover, a friend-with-benefits, or a one-night stand. She was as untouched as freshly fallen snow.

"Well, where would you like to go?"

Remus looked about him. They were already in Hogsmeade. Unsure of where to take her, Remus drifted into the first shop they encountered.

"Madam Puddifoot's?" She gave a light-hearted chuckle. "I never thought you were the type, Remus."

Startled, he took a good look at his surroundings- the charming tables, the happy couples, the pink and white array.

Remus wondered whether he had been dropped into a nightmare. Madam Puddifoot's was a place for _couples_. It wasn't like the Three Broomsticks, where you could walk in with a girl as friends. If you came into Madam Puddifoot's, you had only one purpose- _to spend private time with your girlfriend_. In his mind, Remus could already see the stares, feel the ridicule, the strongest of which was coming from Sirius. 

The words 'Must get out of here' played so loudly in his head that he had broken free of Galatea's grasp and had made it half way to the door before Galatea's "What's wrong?" brought him back to earth.

. He thought, turning around with a bit of reluctance. 

"Oh, you're sweating. You must be hot." She pulled out a handkerchief from the pocket on the side of her dress and dabbed his brow, pushing aside his light brown bangs.

. Galatea admitted to herself. There was a certain charm to his somber face, even to those wizened eyes. 

"Let's sit away from the window, ok?" She offered, unaware of his nervousness. "It'll help keep you cool."

He followed obediently. Walking past the tables of couples, they found seats in a quiet corner of the shop. Remus looked around at all the tables. No one was looking their way, each person was too wrapped up in his or her date. He was feeling much more relaxed when Madam Puddifoot, a tall woman with lots of dark, corkscrew-curly hair on her head, came to take their order.

"Let's start out with some tea." Galatea told the lady. "Do you have any rose tea?"

"It just so happens we do." Madam Puddifoot chirped, seemingly glad to meet another tea connoisseur. Remus squinted in confusion.

"Oh, you'll love it!" Galatea assured him. He nodded. "Ok. Well, I'm not really hungry so I guess I'll just have..." Her expression turned to one of concentration. "a triple serving of ice cream. What about you, Remus?"

"I'll have chicken salad on rye bread, please." He said without hesitation.

"Coming right up," The shop owner left to fill their orders.

"So how are you?" The silvery-haired witch asked, giving Remus a most peculiar look that he, for all his prefectship merited, could not figure out.

"I am well, and you?"

"I'm fine." She replied quickly. "Look, Remus, about last Sunday- Shit!" She shouted, thrusting herself under the little round table. She was watching the large shop window from below. Remus turned, but couldn't see anyone but the portly Potions master strolling by.

"Why are you hiding from Professor Slughorn?" He asked, peering under the table. It was only when Slughorn had passed from view that she rose again.

"Because I've missed the last two Slug Club meetings and the last one for the year just so happens to be tonight."

"I've heard they're actually rather interesting."

"Oh, _sure_ they are," She gave an unbecoming sneer not intended for Remus. She poured herself a cup of rose tea from the teapot that had magically appeared, then poured a cup for Lupin. "It's _bloody_ fun to be forced to hobnob with people who think they know something about you- Do you know why I'm in the stupid Slug Club?"

Remus gave a subtle smile that almost reach his honey-brown eyes. "I suppose it's because you are very pretty."

"No..." The blood rose into her cheeks.

There was a pause while Remus sipped his tea. The tea was rather good, and he was feeling rather comfortable.

"Then perhaps it is because of your talent?"

"_No..._" She mumbled into her tea, embarrassed and flattered by his words.

"Because you're lion-hearted?" He guessed.

"No!" She was shaking her head from side to side as though hoping to shake off her blush. "It's because of my family!"

"Go on..." Remus said, taking another sip of his tea.

"Well, my family has some super-affluent people in it," She explained, but Remus thought she looked just a little disgusted. "My father is a pretty influential man, and his sister- my aunt- married my Uncle Herbert, the heir of the Every Flavor Bean fortune- that's why my cousin Herbert is in the Slug Club," She added. "We're all dead loaded, and that's basically the only reason Slughorn even looks at me."

"Something about having an illustrious family bother you?" Remus inquired, acting on a hunch he had gotten from her face.

"Oh, no," She waved her hands in a dismissive way. "Don't get me wrong- I don't mind having money. The summer houses, the trips- they're great, it's just... I'd rather... Oh, forget about it, it's hard to explain..."

"If you say so."

As if on cue, their orders appeared before them. A long and steady silence bubbled up between the two as they ate.

"So, how do you think your O.W.L.s went?" Remus asked, setting down his sandwich and wiping a bit of mayo from the corner of his mouth. Galatea found herself appreciating the way he finished chewing and swallowed before he spoke, unlike most guys. She mimicked this behavior before she spoke.

"All right, I guess. I'm sure I aced Charms, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts," She smiled, then frowned. "but I positively bombed Muggle Studies and Arithmancy- for the question 'In a Muggle vehicle, what's the difference between stick-shift and automatic?' I put 'One has a stick that you shift and the other doesn't.', and I left an entire page and a half blank on the Arithmancy exam. But oh well," She sighed. "I was never good at Arithmancy anyway. If I passed Potions, this means I'll only have..."

She counted on her fingers. Herbology, Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, Defense.

"Five N.E.W.T. classes! I'll have lots of free time. How 'bout you?"

"I'd rather think about that when I get my results," The corners of his lips rose. They were really getting a work-out today. "Don't want to count all my chickens before they hatch."

"Oh, Remus, you're being just like Lily!" She threw her hands up in the air. "You're a _prefect_, all of your eggs are going to hatch out fat little chicks!" She insisted, playing on the metaphor. "There's nothing to be gained out of being unnecessarily humble, you know!"

"Yet if anyone tells you how pretty you are, you are so very quick to tell them how crazy _they_ are." She opened her mouth to retort, but Remus continued. "And if I recall correctly, the prefect badge almost went to you-"

"Almost doesn't count." She countered.

"I suppose it doesn't..." Remus said quietly, returning to his meal.

It was Galatea's turn to break the silence.

"Speaking of O.W.L.s, I wanted to talk about last Sunday- the night we had our little encounter in the portrait hole."

Remus looked up at her with panicked eyes.

"What did they ask you to do?"

Remus was not sure whether she knew just what kind of response she would be getting if he told her the truth. He did not answer her, chewing the bit of chicken salad with great focus.

"I'm afraid you think too highly of me. I assure you that whatever we were doing, we were in it together."

"Is that your way of telling me you're not going to tell me anything?" She asked shrewdly.

Remus was saved from responding by the jingling of the bell above the shop door. Two very nasty Slytherins walked in, holding hands. One was Janice Frentane, a blonde, fifth-year girl with sharp dark eyes and very big hair that sat on top of her head and was- very obviously, too- magically curled. She was very busty, and was determined to show it by wearing a lime-green dress about two sizes to small. Her face was hard and angled, seemingly following every rule of geometry to the T. Her lips and eyebrows were thin and seemed to have been drawn on using a ruler. Her sixth-year boyfriend, Avernus Barbary, a tall, tanned boy with blue eyes and intentionally-razzed dirty-blonde hair, accompanied her. Galatea and Remus watched them come in.

There was a clash of violet and creosote eyes.

"Oh, look Avy, The Muggle and the Weirdo! They go perfectly together, let's just hope they don't reproduce..." She sneered. Barbary looked over at them, intently staring at Galatea. It was not the look of utter loathing that Janice wore, but something very different- whatever it was in those ice-blue eyes, it made her skin prickle and her hairs stand on end.

"Ignore her, Remus. She only says that because she's trash and wouldn't know a good man if he fell from the sky and landed on her."

Both laughed softly and finished their food in silence. As they stood, the scraping of their chairs brought the attention of Janice back to them.

"Thank God, they're finally leaving. Hopefully they'll take that rotten smell with them..."

Remus turned to Galatea. She looked perfectly untroubled by these words. As she stood, she picked up the floral-patterned teapot.

"Galatea, you can't take that, it belongs to Madam Puddifoot-"

But Galatea continued to walk, teapot in hand, her face expressionless. Remus thought she was headed for the door, but at the last second she turned toward Janice, and, in one swift motion, smashed the teapot over the top of Janice's blonde head. The shatter turned all eyes onto the conflict, but Madam Puddifoot did not appear. No one moved.

Janice, now bleeding from the crown of her head, gave a howl of rage and whipped out her wand. Before Galatea could react, a mumbled jinx from Janice had hit her straight in the chest. She doubled over, her eyes wide with shock. Remus whipped out his wand, but neither girl seemed to take notice as Janice kicked the doubled-over Galatea. Galatea staggered sideways. She righted herself with what appeared to be great difficulty, her resilience to jinxes astounding Lupin. He quickly turned his wand on Avernus, who had made a motion toward his pocket. He could not allow this to turn into a two-on-two battle, so he had no choice but to let the girls duke it out.

Many of the couples were now sitting significantly closer together, watching in awe, amusement, or fear.

Galatea had sprung upon Janice in a heartbeat, ripping her wand from her hand and tossing it aside. Grabbing two fistfuls of those blonde curls, Galatea bodily dragged the kicking, clawing Slytherin across the room, ignoring the bleeding scratches on her hands. She thrust the girl up against the glass display window, leaving a web-shaped crack, and punched her in the gut before turning around and thrusting her against a table, where she crumpled in a heap.

It was not until she had finished her fight that Remus noticed that her face and fingers had taken on a blue tinge. He bounded across the shop to her, his wand still pointed at Barbary, trying to figure out what was wrong. Galatea looked positively terrified. Her mouth was gaping desperately like a fish's when it is thrown out of water, but this did not clarify things for Remus. It appeared she could not speak, but she was growing bluer with every second.

Then it struck him: despite the way her mouth gaped, her chest neither rose nor fell.

Janice must have hit her with an Immobilizing Jinx, but direct contact with Janice's wand must have caused the spell to permeate her body and paralyze her lungs.

Remus quickly muttered the counterjinx, and Galatea's lungs greedily vacuumed in the air.

"Thank you, Remus," She panted, setting her hands on his shoulders for support. The color was returning to her face."I don't...have my wand..."

Remus wanted to ask why on earth she did not carry her wand with her at all times, but no sooner had he thought it than Madam Puddifoot appeared, furious.

"What has happened here?!" She demanded, whipping out her wand and repairing the broken teapot and the cracked window. She made a wide circle with her wand and the table toppled by Janice's body righted itself.

"Ask the Muggle!" Janice hoarsed from the floor. " A pureblood witch, fighting like a barbarian Muggle- it's disgusting!"

Galatea rounded on her, enraged. "Oh, you will say _anything_ to cover up the fact that you just got the shit beat out of you, won't you, Frentane?"

"_You_ did this?" Madam Puddifoot squawked, caught somewhere in between anger and disbelief that a girl in a dress had caused so much damage without magic.

"She tried to suffocate me with a jinx!"

The shop owner rounded on Janice.

"She hit me over the head with a teapot!"

Puddifoot swivelled around to look at Galatea again, who flushed.

"Well-" Galatea started.

Damn, I did throw the first cuff, didn't I?

"Well you shouldn't have said what you said about Remus!" She snapped accusingly.

"The last thing I need is this kind of trouble! All four of you, out!" Puddifoot demanded.

Avernus went over to help Janice up, but all the while he was looking at Galatea with that hungry look. Before she could sneer back, however, she felt Lupin clutch her arm and march her away. Even from outside, however, Galatea could hear Janice screech "And where were you when she was bashing my face?!" Galatea assumed this was directed at Barbary, who had not made the slightest attempt to help Janice at all.

Remus quickly pulled her around the next corner, presumably to avoid crossing paths with Janice and Avernus again.

"Where is your wand?" Remus asked once he was sure they were not being followed. "Has someone stolen it from you?"

"Oh, no no no..." Her voice was calm and casual. "I just didn't feel like bringing it with me today. Sometimes it's nice to not use magic."

The unspoken warnings bounced against Remus lips, determined to break free, but his lips, well-practiced in their game of silence, let nothing pass. What he really wanted to tell her was:

"That may be alright if you're a Muggle, but in the magical world the only way to protect yourself is with magic. What if I hadn't been there?"

But as insensible as her ideas of walking around defenseless were, she _had_ defended him.

"You're hands are bleeding." In her desperate struggle to escape Galatea's vice grip, Janice had shredded the skin of her assailant's hands in several places.

"Well, would you look at that..." She said, as though she had not noticed the scarlet liquid slowly trekking across her hands.

"_Episkey._" In a flash of warm, red light, the skin rejoined itself.

"Thanks," She said plainly. She wiped her bloody hands against her handkerchief.

"I had a great time today," They had gone from Hogsmeade to the common room in silence, but now, as their date drew to a close, they seemed to come back to themselves. Having said the only thing she could think to say, she hugged him lightly. "We should do it again sometime- without the interruptions, of course."

Remus nodded, and returned to his dorm with a small 'goodbye'.

Several people walked by Galatea in the common room. Among them were Potter, Pettigrew, and Black, who for once did not stop to woo her, but rather sped up to his room after looking at her once. Two fifth years, Andrea Hudgens and Carrie Mindleshaw, waved and walked by. Not until Lily had arrived and heard a great deal of the occurrences of Galatea's date did Carreen Edgeby, a mild-mannered, round-eyed second-year arrive, her wide eyes wider than usual.

"Professor McGonagall said to give this to you." Carreen pulled a small roll of parchment from her robes, handing it to her violet-eyed elder.

"Thank you, sweetheart." Galatea replied, taking the scroll. She unraveled it with a look of knowing.

"Are you in trouble again?" Lily said, wearing that same look of knowing. "She finds out so fast, doesn't she? It's like she's a psychic."

"I'm beginning to think she is."

Lily laughed.

"I'll see you in an hour." They had fallen into this routine back in their second year. Galatea would get sucked into a fight, come and tell Lily all the details, get called to McGonagall's office, and return an hour later with detention for the next weekend. They laughed about it a lot, but sometimes Lily wondered when McGonagall would finally snap.

"You know, I've always wondered why she's never sent you to Dumbledore."

"Dumbledore's too busy to deal with these squabbles." Galatea smirked. "And besides, McGonagall and I- we're like this."

She crossed her fingers.

"This sucks, though." Lily sighed, twirling her wand. "We were supposed to have these last few days to relax..."

"Wait- now that I think about it, I shouldn't get detention for fighting! I was in Hogsmeade- you can't get in trouble for fighting off-grounds!" Galatea burst out angrily. "I'll be right back!"

She bounded to McGonagall's office, but entered with more caution. The Transfiguration teacher was thinner-lipped than usual. McGonagall noticed her immediately.

"Miss Stapleton," The professor said, displeased. "You have been in my office so often I am beginning to remember how many freckles there are below your right ear without looking."

"Three." McGonagall said curtly. Galatea shut her own open mouth.

"Professor, could we possibly skip to the punishment, please? It's been a long day..."

McGonagall's sharp eyes turned on her pupil. For a second, Galatea feared McGonagall might scream at her.

"Punishment? What punishment?" She snapped. "As displeased as I am about your assault on Janice Frentane-"

"Assault!?" Galatea burst. "You didn't hear what she said!"

"I am well aware of what happened in Hogsmeade today, and if you interrupt me again you will run behind the train to London." The Transfiguration teacher threatened.

"Sorry, Professor."

"Now, as I was saying- Though I am not pleased to see you are in my office for fighting _again_, you were in Hogsmeade, and therefore I am not able to assign you detention."Galatea's lips parted again, ready to ask 'then why am I here?', but quickly resealed themselves at one look from McGonagall.

"I called you down here, however, to address something that may be of _personal_ interest to you." She paused, waiting for her most pugnacious student to interject. When Galatea did not speak, McGonagall continued, "Madam Puddifoot, though she was able to easily repair the damage you inflicted upon her shop, is not at all pleased with what took place. She has considered banning all students from her shop."

Galatea gave an apprehensive grimace.

"Out of concern for your-" McGonagall made as awkward a face as such a rigid woman could make, combing her mind for a term she did not often use. "...your _social status_, I suggest you go down there and give Madam Puddifoot a full apology before the end of term. Ask Mr. Filch or Hagrid to escort you down. I imagine some of the other students would be quite angry with you if they found out you were the reason they could no longer go to Madam Puddifoot's tea shop."

"Yes, Professor." Galatea replied, but thinking the very opposite. She hated apologies.

"You may go." The Professor told her. Galatea pushed her chair back, got up, and turned the knob on the door.

"Miss Stapleton."

"Yes, Professor?" Galatea asked calmly, turning to face her favorite teacher.

"I got wind of your performance on the non-written portion of the Transfiguration O.W.L. I am thoroughly pleased."

"Is that a smile, Professor?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Miss Stapleton."

But Galatea clearly saw McGonagall's lips struggling to get back into a downward position.

As soon as she was out of earshot of McGonagall's office, Galatea swore loudly and punched the nearest wall. All her knuckles cracked and her hand seared with pain. She cradled her injured fist. Had she known this would be the end result, she would have let Janice's comments slide this time, or at least dragged her out into the street, maybe jumped her on the way back to Hogwarts. One thing was certain, however: She was not going into Hogsmeade to apologize to Puddifoot. That would be far too embarrassing, far too awkward. As far as Galatea was concerned, an apology consisted of 'I'm sorry' followed by what you were sorry for, but people never seemed to think that was enough, even when you really meant it. What more could someone say? Besides, Galatea knew far better ways of dealing with the small business owner. Doing so, however, would mean she would have to follow through on a promise she had been hoping to avoid.

She would have to write to her father, the man who, ironically enough, always told her she did not think about the consequences of her actions.

Galatea opened her letter with a simple 'Hello Father' and instantly went into her impressive Transfiguration marks without asking how he was or saying she was 'fine', followed by her equally astounding performance on the Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts exams. In her handful of years, Galatea had learned quite well how to minimize the amount of trouble she would eventually find herself in. She started by telling some very pleasant truths. The next paragraph of her letter told of her promising Potions and Herbology grades, with a long drabble about how well she had expected to have done on the Arithmancy exam. This was the second step of dealing with her parents- the pleasing lies. She had long ago thrown away her guilt about lying to her parents, and 3/4 of every letter she wrote to them was false. She wrapped up her letter with a request that her father make a large donation to Madam Puddifoot's, as it 'served her best future interests to have close alliances in Hogsmeade'. She did not tell him about the fight. The last part of her tactic, the vague request, was usually taken on without much inquiry from her father. He was quite liberal with his money (as he had almost more than a team of ten mathematicians could count in a year), and one of his few concerns was ensuring that Galatea glided up through the Ministry ranks the second she left Hogwarts. She ended it with a request that he send her love to her brother and closed the letter with 'Sincerely, Galatea'.

She folded up the letter with a great deal of satisfaction at her own craftiness before heading up to the Owlery to send it off with Mithridates.

She returned to the common room. The young witch was disappointed to find that Lily had already gone upstairs, but, then again, she was almost an hour later than expected. She was about to do the same when a large hand closed around her wrist, and someone from behind her whispered in her ear.

"If you have any sort of decency, if you're any sort of respectable human being, you'll meet me here at midnight." Came a forceful whisper.

"Take your hand off me, Sirius, before I remove it for you." She hissed without looking at him. He removed his hand, but it hovered over her arm as though expecting her to bolt off. "Now, why should I listen to you?"

"If you care about Remus at all, you'll come."

"What's Remus got to do with-"

But he had already returned to his dorm.

"Damn you, Black." He had given her an offer she could not refuse. As undeserving as he was to judge her, she would not let anyone attack her dignity or humanity.

At exactly midnight Galatea crept down into the common room. Sirius Black was already waiting, his obsidian eyes fixed upon her, but not with their usual look- this face was so much more serious.

"What is it?" She demanded. "Why am I down here at this hour?"

"I want you to leave Remus alone."

Galatea sneered. "Your jealousy is disgusting."

"Stop." There was that canine growl again. Sirius clenched his fists. "Stop trying to make me out to the be the bad guy all the time. This about _you_ and what _you're_ doing."

"Excuse me?" She snapped, offended. "And just what is it you think you know about me and what I do?"

"Oh, I know _plenty_, Galatea." Galatea hid her shock. Sirius had never been nasty to her before.

_Not that I care. He's just showing his true colors._

"Remus told us all about the little date you had today. He may not see what's going on, but I do. You are using him, and I'm telling you right now to stop it."

"_Using him? _You've got to be bloody kidding. You just can't _stand_ to see me with anyone, can you, Black? And you'll make up any old lie to cover up that envy, won't you? Did you ever consider that I might possibly _like_ Remus?" She seethed through gritted teeth. Both were livid.

"Why would I consider that," Sirius retorted viciously, licking his lips. "When I know exactly what you're up to? But I admit, I never thought you were a harlot like that."

Galatea launched at him, but he grabbed her arm and twisted her around so that they both faced in the same direction with her arm pinned behind her back.

"Go ahead, hit me, scream at me- make as much noise as you can." Sirius hissed in her ear. "So that everyone can come in here and wonder what the hell is going on."

He pushed her away. She stumbled forward, but did not come back at him.

"So what exactly is it that I'm up to, Sirius?" She uttered his name with extra loathing, wishing horrible things upon him as she did.

"Don't play stupid with me! You're using him to try to find out what we were doing last Sunday or to try to get me to give up on you or something- all I know is that you had other motives today, and you _didn't_ have Remus's best interests in mind."

"Those are all assumptions you are making without proof." Resisting the urge to attack him again.

But Remus's protector of five years was already armed with a reply.

"He told us it was the first thing you asked him, and yes- he was bothered by it."

"So I asked him a question! You haven't proved anything."

"Cut the bullshit!" Sirius seemed to have jumped to a new level of anger. "The evidence is all around you! Just the fact that you picked Remus out of all people is a sign that you're up to something! In case you haven't noticed, you've never thought anybody else was good enough before, and Remus doesn't exactly stand out!"

"Maybe Remus isn't like other guys, maybe he's special!" Galatea countered, but her confidence was wavering. Thoughts she did not want to think were crawling up the back of her skull, kept at bay only by her supreme anger.

"Shut up!" Sirius barked that canine bark. "You think I need _you_ to tell me how special he is? I know that better than you'll _ever_ know!"

"Well I know it pretty damn well, so just _stay out of my business_!" Galatea roared. It was taking all her discipline to resist ripping into him.

"Stop being so egotistical." He said in a low voice. Galatea found herself disgusted and enraged by his resumption of self-control.

_He's just trying to show me up, isn't he?!_

"You're out of your fucking mind if you think I came down here tonight to meddle in your business." His eyes seemed to pierce her soul, and for a split second Galatea acknowledged that the only thing keeping her from cowering beneath his gaze was her own incredible indignation and fury. "There's only one reason I'm here tonight, and his name is Remus Lupin."

He walked over to her so that the face Galatea longed to beat beneath her fists was right above her. each breathed hot, short, angry breaths upon the other as though hoping to incinerate the other.

"Let me just tell you this: If you really want Remus, have him. What can I do about it? Nothing. But if I _ever_ find out that your intentions for him aren't 100 pure, then I don't care how badly I want you, or how spectacular I _still_ think you are. I will make you suffer. And oh yes- you _will_ suffer."

Galatea's fingers tingled with the desire to do to him what she had done to Janice ten times over.

"Go to hell, Sirius Black." She spat.

"Well at least I won't be lonely down there if I do."

She relieved her fingers, but he knocked her fist off course with ease.

"Same old tricks, huh?" Sirius said smugly. "You've pulled the 'sudden right hook' on me too many times for me to ever not see it coming. What's with that look?" He said, noting the ugly expression on her beautiful face. "Mad because I've blocked both of your cuffs tonight, or because I know you well enough to be able to do that?"

And in that moment, Galatea did something she had not done in nearly five years. She thought it the sign of someone who only _pretended_ to be able to fight, the sign of someone who was weak, but she didn't care. She just wanted to make Sirius Black hurt.

She thrust out both hands and pushed him down onto his butt, turned around, and fled to her room.

"Well that was just _unoriginal_." Sirius mumbled to himself. He rose from the floor and stalked off to his own dorm.

* * *

Galatea punched her pillow through most of the night. 

_Damn him._

Sure, she had intended to ask Remus about their encounter in the portrait hole when she'd sent the invitation,

_But that isn't the only reason I asked him, is it?_

She knew one thing for sure,

_Even though he's a really nice guy, I don't like Remus that way._

But the battle inside her head went on.

_But not liking him that way doesn't make asking him out wrong, does it? I mean, I am curious about him! Sirius leaving me alone would just have been an extra perk, right? He didn't have any right to accuse me of anything! But he was right, I didn't even ask Remus about himself. Am I..._

_Wrong?_

That night, Galatea dreamed of her father and Sirius, tall and towering, each taking turns pushing her to the ground as the shadows of owls flew overhead.

* * *

On the other side of the tower, Sirius shared Galatea's temporary insomnia. It had just dawned on him that, no matter what way her 'thing' with Lupin ended, he, Sirius, was not going to have her. Even as he screamed at her, he'd wanted Galatea Stapleton. But if she was serious about Remus, than this was the end of his four-year long ambition. 

_But Moony said he doesn't feel that way about Galatea, right? _

Still, the very though of those two together,

_-makes me shudder. But I'm willing to bet the hair on my head that she doesn't really like him that way._

But even if Remus was hiding his feelings,

_Galatea will find a way to set things right. She's like that._

_Finally the end! I was at camp two weeks ago and had work all last week so I didn't have much time to write and this was a pretty difficult chapter. Next chapter is the last chapter of Sirius as a fifth year at Hogwarts, and you can probably expect it to be Sirius-centered. Don't forget to REVIEW! I accept anonymous reviews, so everyone should leave a comment! Chapter 6 should be up soon._


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